Into the Swing of Things

All settled in now.  Bumped into a few people from home like the lovely Laura Nicole from Southampton.  So nice to see a friendly face from home.  The guys I all live with are awesome.  Been for a couple games of Frisbee golf.  Its an awesome game they play out here which is exactly like golf but you play with frisbees, and much bigger holes.  I suck at it now but plenty of time to improve.  Been riding a few times and explored the hill.  All about the park, need to get back into the swing of it all.  Work is pretty sweet.  Some cool people working there.  Its an easy job.  Really layed back.  Gets mega busy but its good to be running around behind the bar serving all types of cool people.  It feels good to have a job and a place to live and now getting to ride when ever, but it all happened so quick I need to spend some time getting to know some of the people around here to make it feel like I belong here.

TJ, one of my house mates, had some mates pop down to visit him and as they were keen to learn to snowboard me and TJ took them up for a lesson.  Bit of a laugh and they did pretty well.  Then they wanted showing round Wanaka so as a thank you for teaching them they took me to puzzle world!  A triply little place with loads of visual illusions and things of that nature. Complete tourist activity but it was pretty interesting and I always love having my mind messed with.  

I have really got into the swing of it all now.  Riding more.  Going up the hill nice and early before work and getting some good riding in.  Yesterday, twat that I am called last run (Which is a Big no no! You Always get hurt.)  and took a bit of a fall.  Hard face plant.  Not fun!  As I got up my vision was pretty messed up and I realised that I couldn't remember where I worked.  When I voiced this, and my mates asked me a few more questions it became clear after failing to answer several that I was not ok.  Medic!!  After about a half hour it started coming back to me and they kept me for a while under observation. 

A mild concussion and all good.  Just no riding for a few days.  More frisbee golf!  Getting much better. Pulled off a cracking shot today. Hole in 2.  Yea boi! Me and Brad and Tom (2 more house mates) went for a bike ride round the Lake just as a reminder of the incredible scenery that surrounds this gorgeous town.  

The Lake looked so tempting for a quick dip after a strenuous cycle.  However I was assured i would instantly regret the decision.  Another time perhaps. 

Limbo

Feeling a little under the weather Coming out of the airport into the -4 temperature.  I put this down to the fact that for 8 hours I had just been sat next to a very obviously unwell woman from Bangladesh, who although didn't speak anything close to a word of English found it necessary to talk to me the whole way.  Un thwarted by my headphones she would poke me to ask me questions which might as well have been a dial up tone for how well I understood her.  Eventually I established that she required me to fill out her visa form because she kept thrusting all her worldly important documents in my face.  So I did.  Any way I diverse.  

I was feeling a bit ill and very excited. I was waiting for my friend Caitlin and Ange to pick me up.  They are friends I met last winter season working with them in Verbier.  Great gals. And they were both working in Queenstown as instructors.  So along pootled a little van and out they jumped.  It was awesome to see them both and with them of course came the prospect of a much needed bed.  They are both staying with a guy called Dean.  He is a single father of 2 great kids.  And the owner of a tattoo shop.  He lives at the top of a big hill with a stunning view and loves his bourbon.  The first night I very bluntly asked Caitlin and Ange's friend Sarah if I could pass out on a mattress she had in the corner while the others went out on the piss.  After a much needed sleep I got productive.  

I need to find a job and a place to live pronto!  Thankfully Dean was away for a week so for now it was cool to crash the sofa while I sort my life out.  So now I need to find a job, a place to live, get a bank account, a phone and all that crap.  The next few days was spent relentlessly filling out applications emailing and boring stuff like that.  It was seeming really rather unhopeful even with people putting in good words for me and mates putting me in contact with the right people.  (the who you know side of things)  Eventually some fruit from my labour, an email back from a lady who manages a bar in Wanaka. (an hour away)  Lone star bar.  http://www.lonestar.co.nz/location/24/wanaka .aspx  .I have been offered a trial there.  fingers crossed for me!

So i hopped on a bus to Wanaka straight away.  I got there and met my friend Jack.  He is a Kiwi born and bread in Wanaka who I also worked with last season.  Real chilled guy to have around.  He mentioned that a couple people were moving out of his house so there might be some space for me.  But first I got some directions from him up to Lone Star Cafe.  I borrowed his bike and wizzed up the hill which is a mission!  If I get the job I know I'm going to quickly hate this hill with a passion.  Got there and after a five minute chat with the woman I had got the email from she asked me to chuck on a uniform and start my trial.  Helena is her name.  She is a really cool gal.  It seems well layed back there.  Great place and really the sort of place I'd love to work.  best of all I would only ever start at 4.30 which gives me every day to ride!  The trial went well and there are some really chilled peeps working there.  Plus I get free food every shift which is to die for!  

I headed back to Jacks and everyone said it was all cool to move in when the other guys move out.  7 guys, a huge t.v, wifi, hot tub, sauna.  Yeah I can get used to that!  Felt good.  Everything sorted in a couple of hours of being in Wanaka. Now I just need to find 1300 bucks for a ski pass!  

  

Transit

So I will briefly catch you up to date on the hardship I actually had to go through to get here. Now I'm not one to believe in so called signs or superstitions but after 12 very clearly negative events or mishaps towards my departure I was starting to get convinced.  I shan't take you through all of them but just tell you it involved quite a lot of money spent on X-rays and C.T scans and a broken rib being mistaken for something much more serious (namely the big C).  So after a lot of emails and back and forths and trips to Beckeham and London eventually my visa was approved.  Not before my laptop had died.  So once the laptop was fixed and the visa was granted I was ready to go.  

A few minor set backs with booking flights and I arrived at Heathrow ready to depart at 22:00 "flight delayed 23:00" This had me slightly worried about my connection Kuala Lumpa that I only had 4 hours to get.  "flight delayed 0:00"  slightly more worried as my window was closing even smaller. "flight delayed 1:30"  Now pretty sure my connection would be missed I was on the phone to the mother panicking like mad demanding she ring up Malaysia Airlines right away and check they r going to get me to NZ eventually with no further cost. As my funds as per usual are very limited!  After several calls I was reassured that I would be delivered to Queenstown regardless of the obstacles the airline created.  The passengers then all received a notice over the intercom.  

"This is an announcement for all passengers for the 22:00 flight to Kuala Lumpa, Please take a seat as we have not yet got a departure time for your flight. There has been some technical issues discovered on the aircraft and we currently have engineers working to fix it." 

 This was a little unsettling that we were waiting indefinitely to board a broken plane!  But eventually we did.  They had decided that as there were no hotels to put us all up for the night the perviously unfixable plane was infact sky worthy?! By some magic the flight and connections were all successful and I arrived sleep deprived and very rushed on time at Queenstown airport.  Success.  

Welcome

Hi again folks.  As you may or may not know i have toddled off to the other side of the world for what plans to be a year.  South island New Zealand to be more specific.  As I'm hoping its going to be a very exciting emotional and eventful year I thought a blog might be a good idea.  

i did one once before called the Vantastic Adventures of a Vacant Toad.  Its about a little expedition down the west coast of America.  Feel free to have a read.            

http://vacantvan.blogspot.co.uk 

So Welcome to my blog.  I hope you find it entertaining or at least an effective way of determining that I'm still alive. Enjoy.